Liam Hoden

Sheffield Wednesday's 2-0 win over Brighton on Friday night has the Owls holding the firm advantage going into Monday's play-off semi-final second leg at the Amex on Monday.

Here are five talking points from Friday's memorable victory...

Owls fans brought a special atmosphere to Hillsborough

KIERAN LEE'S IMPORTANCE CANNOT BE UNDERESTIMATED

Head and shoulders above the rest in the man of the match race, Kieran Lee ran his socks off for Wednesday. Incredibly lively in attack and fully deserving of his goal, the midfielder did plenty of vital work when the ball was going the other way. His tireless pressing high up the pitch ensured Brighton struggled to mount attacks all night long. After a slight dip in his influence as 2016 wore on, Lee has looked back to his best as the Owls surged into the play-offs and waltzed through the first leg. His level of performance seems to mirror that of the team as a whole - and with that there is no coincidence.

THE SCORELINE SHOULD HAVE BEEN WIDER

Let's hope Wednesday do not live to regret that. The stage looked set for Wednesday to really twist the knife when Brighton went down to ten men and they grabbed their second. Carlos Carvalhal was keen to do so, making a trio of attacking substitutions. But after some initial pressure, Wednesday's desire for a third seemed to wane. It's so often said that 2-0 is the most dangerous scoreline and that will never be more true if Brighton score the first goal on Monday.

HILLSBOROUGH CAN BE ONE SPECIAL PLACE

The atmosphere on Friday night was incredible and certainly the best in recent memory. Arsenal earlier this season was a great night but expectations were low. Against Wycombe four years ago, the feeling was mainly relief until the wild celebrations at full time. This was something different. Filling their allocation in four sides of the ground were confident Wednesdayites. And when the team backed up the supporters' confidence from the first whistle, it only increased the backing they received. The noise was incredible and the sight of the lights which accompanied the singing at one point will live long in the memory.

SOMETIMES YOU NEED TO WAIT 30 SECONDS BEFORE CELEBRATING A GOAL

For the third time this season at Hillsborough - and the second for the Owls - a goal was ruled out an age after it was scored. Fernando Forestieri followed on from Michael Turner and Leeds' Liam Cooper in seeing a strike ruled out deep into celebration time. All three were ultimately correct decisions but raise questions about the influence opposition players can have on officials and the nature of communication between the officials themselves.

SOMETIMES LADY LUCK SMILES

It would be amiss to not say there was a certain amount of good fortune for Wednesday in the first leg. For a side to lose four players to injury inside an hour was incredibly unfortunate for Brighton. Wednesday nevertheless were fully deserving of the win. But they have had a decent amount of luck this season - even if refeering decisions have gone against them on a regular basis. They stuttered on numerous occasions, failing to pick up wins needed to secure a top six spot. But results elsewhere largely went their way, ensuring they were rarely punished. Hey, having some level of luck on your side is surely positive in the race for the Premier League.